Democratic Committee of Richmond County Annouces Passing of Gene Prisco

Having been a fellow activist and friend for over 40 years, at this point I am not capable of commenting on Gene's passing. We saw him last Tuesday when we picked up Loretta to drive her back to Staten Island from her daughter's place in Villanover where Gene was in hospice care for the past month. There is the medical story, the political story, the friendship story to tell. Due to Loretta's being ill at this time, the wake and funeral are on hold. Any change and announcements will be sent out. Here is the announcement sent out this afternoon from the Priscos' Democratic Club -- yes Virginia, there are progressive Democrats in Staten Island.

I regret to inform you of the passing of Eugene Prisco, Democratic Congressional candidate in 1998 and a longtime party activist and community leader. Gene was one of the most passionate and articulate voices on behalf of the Democratic Party that I have ever known. He was a man of principle, a man of vision and a man with a deep and abiding love for his family, Staten Island and the Democratic Party. With Gene's passing, we have lost a champion for the values of the Democratic Party and it is a loss we all feel deeply. For those who have had the privilege of knowing Gene, I hope you'll carry his memory with you and I ask that you pray for his family and friends during this difficult time.

Services are still in the process of being arranged. When the details are finalized we will announce them.

Yours Truly,

John P. Gulino

Chairman.

 

Report on John King/Merryl Tisch Dog and Pony Show in Binghamton

Bearing signs reading “We are human, not machines,” “Oust the King” and “End Fed Ed,” Binghamton area residents let state Education Commissioner John King see — and hear — their discontent with Common Core state standards. “Tell the assembly we’re coming for them. We’re coming for them, we’re angry and we vote,” said Christina Bangel, a seventh-grade social studies teacher at Owego-Apalachin Middle School and mother of two third-grade students at Owego Elementary School....King gets earful on Common Core

Below are two reports. One personal and the other press.
When I saw Doug Green's headline (Dr. King's Binghamton Tour) I misread it as Birmingham and assumed this was a retrospective of Martin Luther King and the civil rights movement. But hey, John King, you are no Martin Luther King. In fact you are the very opposite -- MLK would be standing with the real reformers instead of the ed deformers.

There's a great slide show with pics like this:

http://www.pressconnects.com/article/20131125/NEWS02/311250077/King-gets-earful-Common-Core?nclick_check=1

(See the entire article below the break.)

Here is an edited version of Doug's report.

Last night (11/25) was Dr. King's Binghamton tour. He was accompanied by Ms. Tisch, and regent Talon. They visited three school districts and viewed what sounded like "dog and pony" shows. At 2:00 pm they did a closed Q & A at the local PBS studio. There was a lottery that determined who got in and questions had to be submitted before hand. The event lasted exactly one hour and was pretty tame. There wasn't any hint of passion from the crowd and the answers all sounded pretty canned.

At 6:00 there was a public event at a Binghamton Middle School. The first 45 people who asked to speak were sorted into three groups of 15. After a brief introduction, the first 15 spoke one after another while the folks on stage, which
included local state legislators sat and listened. 

It started out with a bang as the first speaker let them know how bad the common core and the testing is for kids and teachers. The beat went on as the speakers varied in tone from highly critical to hostile. As each one spoke, most of the packed crowd stood as a show of solidarity. Each speaker received applause in spit of the moderator asking them several times not to applaud. 

After the first 15 speakers Dr. King made a few statements in response to some of the comments. Then the next 15 spoke with the same passion about how screwed up they thought the system was. Many talked about their kids crying and hating school. Many non ELA/Math subjects were represented by teachers. 

As King spoke after this bunch, the crowd got rowdy and Ms. Tisch spoke up to chide them for their behavior. That seemed to work. The final 15 was more of the same with the final speaker drawing a standing ovation as he called out the legislators to do something. He was a former elementary principal and friend. I was going to speak, but I gave him my spot as what was needed was his passion as opposed to my nerdy analysis.
Regent Tallon commented at the end with the basic pitch that we can't go backwards. King blamed the feds for the testing and told the audience that pre tests that seem to be part of the problem are a district decision. He also said he has seen great common core lessons by teachers who adapted them.

King gets earful on Common Core

The Opt-Outers: Focus on Change the Stakes in NY Mag

Despite some inaccuracies, overall a positive article featuring Change the Stakes parents and Jane Hirschman from Time Out From Testing. Here are some comments from the CTS listserve, some focused on one serious factual error in the piece.

Article shows opposition NOT driven solely by white suburban moms... Leonie Haimson

It was a great article. But the part about losing federal funds is not true. I emailed and let him know... CB

Terrific article. I hope Mr. Kolker will follow up with a correction to this point. If I were only just now considering opting out, reading this would make me less sure of my decision. It's also not great for principals who are already resistant to parents who want to opt out. Where did he get this information?
http://www.nysape.org/if-my-child-refuses-state-tests-will-my-school-lose-funding.html
This link is particularly helpful to share when people refer to this as if it were a threat.... Janine

Families and teachers protesting high-stakes testing in front of the offices of the Department of Education in April.

(Photo: Greg Dunkel)

I like the picture, especially since I took it. Was an exciting demo and I am gad I could make it real. I wouldn't have taken the picture or followed the struggle against testing without being in the AFT Peace and Justice caucus. Here is a URL for the other pictures I took that day:
www.flickr.com/photos/drdunk_greg/sets/72157633349827329/
---Greg

http://nymag.com/news/features/anti-testing-2013-12/index4.html#print

Also check out this video from Parent Voices, another parent group. "We are all hoping that our new Mayor will take some huge steps away from the last 12 years of Bloomberg policies. This video was created to express how parents and children feel about their educational experience. Please watch and share, post and spread the word! Please look at the 3 minute film on the front page of www.parentvoicesny.org It is a great film about high-stakes testing, Mayor-elect De Blasio, and the possibility of change.

The Opt-Outers

What happens if enough New York parents say they don’t want their kids to take tests?

• By Robert Kolker
• Published Nov 24, 2013 

http://nymag.com/news/features/anti-testing-2013-12/index4.html#print

Susan Ohanian Reports, November 26, 2013

Ten  Top Reasons the U. S. Congress Would Be a  Good Place to Field Test the Common Core Tests
Susan Ohanian blog 2013-11-23 http://susanohanian.org/core.php?id=626

I usually post Susan's stuff on Saturday morning but call this a Thanksgiving special. Susan's point about Bill Clinton joining hands with Lou Gerstner should be amended with the 3rd party - Al Shanker, who led the UFT/AFT into the entire neo-liberal ed deform morass from the early 80s right through today. The Richard Kahlenberg Shanker bio has lots of stuff about the alliance between him and the Clinton's and the business community -- that sucked the AFT/UFT into this entire nonsense. Those chapters of the book about the 80s and early 90s are chilling.

Someone told me a story that when the Business Roundtable "A Nation at Risk" report came out in 1982, people in the UFT, including Sandy Feldman, reacted against it -- and were shocked when Shanker supported it -- but of course, Unity followed along like sheep. If the UFT were a vibrant democratic organization we could have put a stop to the madness well before the ball got rolling.

From here on it's all Susan -- even if you don't get to all the links -- we at least have them recorded for research purposes.

As noted for years, the Common Core exists to deliver the national test that business interests have pushed for ever Arkansas governor Bill Clinton joined hands with Lou Gerstner to spearhead the Business Roundtable version of ed deform. President Clinton tried to get a national test. Now Obama has two tests but opposition is skyrocketing. If the Common Core tests collapse,  the curriculum will crumble.
Let's listen to 'Joe Hill' again. And remember that we are all in this together--one class against Ed Deform, working for equity in the schools.
Susan
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More states delay Common Core testing as concerns grow
Valerie Strauss
Washington Post Answer Sheet
2013-11-24 http://susanohanian.org/core.php?id=631
A national test was the goal of the Common Core and may now bring it down.
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Note to New York Times Columnists: Shut Up!
Susan Ohanian
New York Times
2013-11-24 http://susanohanian.org/core.php?id=629
Once again a New York Times columnist exhibits total ignorance of the topic, and no it isn't Thomas Friedman this time.
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Where Is the Students' Lobbyist?
Senator Jack M. Martins
letter
2013-11-21 http://susanohanian.org/core.php?id=628
New York Senator Jack Martins has a few words to say about the Common Core, with a link to a forum he called on the topic.
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Stop This Train: The Common Core and the Uncommon Student
Paul V. Hogan, with Ohanian notes
blog
2013-11-19 http://susanohanian.org/core.php?id=627
Read this and you'll know that we'd better start rolling on the Revolution today.
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Ten  Top Reasons the U. S. Congress Would Be a  Good Place to Field Test the Common Core Tests
Susan Ohanian
blog
2013-11-23 http://susanohanian.org/core.php?id=626
Yes, there are 10 reasons.
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PARRC Task Prototype: Turning Literature Into Pedagogical Chop Suey and Cyanide
Susan Ohanian
blog
2013-11-22 http://susanohanian.org/core.php?id=625
Sample PARCC questions. How long will educators, their unions, and their professional organizations keep their silence about this?
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Complicated, Imported Solutions Do Not Work
Jason Kass
New York Times
2013-11-19 http://susanohanian.org/core.php?id=624
You'll see why my letter about this article did not get published.
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N.Y. school principals write letter of concern about Common Core tests
Valerie Strauss and NY principals
Washington Post Answer Sheet
2013-11-21 http://susanohanian.org/core.php?id=623
I applaud this letter even as I worry that it seems to imply that what is needed is a better test.
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Education reform backed by the wealthy
James M. Odato, with Ohanian notes
Albany Times Union
2013-11-24 http://susanohanian.org/outrage_fetch.php?id=1737
New York Regents show us that you'd better look a gift horse in the mouth.
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LAUSD iPad program gets mixed review from committee
 Pasadena Star-News
2013-11-21 http://susanohanian.org/outrage_fetch.php?id=1736
Lots of controversy, not much sense.
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Order the CD of the resistance:
"No Child Left Behind? Bring Back the Joy."
To order online (and hear samples from the songs) http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/dhbdrake4
Other orders: Send $15 to
Susan Ohanian
P. O. Box 26
Charlotte, VT 05445

Opt-Out Grows: Long Island High Stakes Testing Forum Monday Nov. 25, 7:30

A reminder to those who can make this.

Morna McDermott: Flow Chart Exposes Common Core's Myriad Corporate Connections

The friends of my enemies are not my friends. I can't find the AFT/UFT and NEA connections on this chart. Where would you put them on this chart? Where there is the biggest chance to get a brown nose.

Here is Morna McDermott on the video version:

Walking the Labyrinth of the Corporate-Owned-Common Core

And the Truthdig article:

U.S. education reform isn't so much a "Race to the Top," because no matter which schools climb to the top of the ladder first, corporations always win.

Morna McDermott mapped the Common Core State Standard Initiative's corporate connections in a new flow chart, which reveals how corporations and organizations that are members of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) have funded and perpetuated Common Core standards throughout the states.

More:  http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/18442-flow-chart-exposes-common-cores-myriad-corporate-connections#.Uo7no3Hdtis.email

Arjun Janah Responds to my analyis of Paul Krugman column and principal/teacher power relationship

The labor unions made advances when socialist (including communist) movements were highly active around the globe. Could it be that concessions were made to labor from fear that socialists might take over the unions or that workers would see advances made in other countries and demand a greater share of the pie -- including political power? Yes, the red-baiting worked, with the more radical unions and their leaders neutralized in many ways -- and we are seeing the long term consequences of that.... Arjun Janah

There some reactions to my parsing of the Krugman's column on Friday -Paul Krugman on the imbalanced boss-worker power relationship applied to NYC principals and teachers. The most in-depth was from long-time NYC high school teacher Arjun Janah who is often so thoughtful.

Here he points out that even the virulently anti-communist Albert Shanker benefitted from the push from the left and when he and other union leaders helped stamp out the left in the unions they suffered - and are suffering today - the long term consequences that threaten the very existence of unions.

Some areas where I disagree:
I believe he may be wrong on the column in the NY Times point since I think Randi does run something.

Also his point about only attacking the UFT leadership - where his  affiliation with the New Action point of view emerges. That point of view lets the UFT leadership off the hook for their level of complicity and enabling of the ed deform movement -- unless they are called out constantly they will get away with obfuscating/muddling the issues and confusing the membership. The only way to fight back against ed deformers is to declare them as enemies and treat them as so.

And on the "quitting" factor. Yes the economy is bad and yes there may be 10 people lined up to take every job for the health benefits and other perks alone -- but then why do so many people quit in the first place? And of course the whole idea is to encourage this turnover so as to create a revolving non-career teaching force which will be so much cheaper.

Arjun's blogs are

The Humble Subject Teacher

http://subject-teacher.blogspot.com

I would like to elaborate on a small point that may be significant. The labor unions made advances when socialist (including communist) movements were highly active around the globe. Could it be that concessions were made to labor from fear that socialists might take over the unions or that workers would see advances made in other countries and demand a greater share of the pie -- including political power?

Yes, the red-baiting worked, with the more radical unions and their leaders neutralized in many ways -- and we are seeing the long term consequences of that.

Albert Shanker voiced strong anticommunist views, and even defended an indefensible, criminal, murderous war abroad (in Vietnam and contiguous countries), but he and the union benefited from the socialist groundswell that struck fear into the hearts of the wealthy and their corporate and government hirelings. Also, the terms of the public conversation were different, with basic socialist premises (without the explicit label) being accepted, despite the anti-red rhetoric, by the public as being for the public good. So we did not see the questioning, belittlement, scapegoating and imminent or ongoing privatization of public institutions -- not just public schools, but public libraries, the federal post office, the public jails, state and city universities, even the military corps -- and of public workers that we are now seeing. Instead, we saw an expansion of these things, along with things like Social Security, Medicaid, SSI, Food Stamps, Medicare... All of these are now under attack. While the advances on social issues -- on civil rights for African Americans, women -- and now gays, may be around a while longer, the advances on economic issues made by workers are being rolled back. Rightly or wrongly, a large segment of the public has been persuaded that many of these things are benefiting others than themselves, at their expense. Much of the public has also been persuaded that public workers are lazy, incompetent and feeding at the public trough supplied by taxpayers.

The mistake made by the collaborative unions (and I would include even Shanker's union among these) is that they made deals with the owners (be these private holders or the government) that benefited the union members (in particular the senior ones) but not the general public -- except by example or precedent. This is a mistake that socialist unions would not have made. By doing this, divisions were created between the general public and union workers -- and between unions, which led to the resentments and disunity that you see today, with crabs in the barrel trying to pull each other down, rather than lift everybody up and out. In the unions' heydays, the unions had strong public support -- no doubt in part because union membership was greater, with each household in an urban or industrial area likely to have members or relatives who were union members. The loss of much of our manufacturing sector, automation and the increased outsourcing of even high-tech services, has contributed to this erosion. But so has weak union leadership -- and a divided, apathetic, brainwashed and increasingly overworked membership, let us not forget. Now, we rely on backdoor deals with politicians that unions support. But this has long become less and less tenable.

If you look around the world, labor is (with a few notable exceptions) in disarray, disunited and fragmented, with workers battling one another across all kinds of divisions. Workers in one school know nothing about what's happening in another (with the weak, "collaborative" union leadership no doubt being a factor in that). But most workers in the schools in NY City also know next to nothing about what auto and other workers in Detroit are going through, save what they read in Murdoch's New York Post. Our Klein is now in a powerful position in NewsCorp, and this anti-union rag is still being distributed for free in the schools and widely read and discussed, with some social studies teachers even basing lessons on articles from this paper!

Of course, even the so-called "liberal" (only on "social", not on economic matters close to home) New York Times is not much better when it comes to union issues. One should look at its ownership and its editorial staff. They are part of the wealthy elite in this country that has little knowledge or interest in workers' issues, except for an instinctive aversion to these. Each class protects its own interests-- except for the working class, which can be intimidated or manipulated, with a bit of bribery in the way of crumbs going a long way in ensuring dog-like status for workers.

Among print dailies in the city, the Daily News, nominally Democratic, also regularly picks on teachers and other public workers. Newsday was better, but was run out of town. About the only widely available paper in which you can find reportage favorable to union workers, with in-depth discussion of our issues, is the weekly Chief Leader, which costs only $1 a week. It is worth reading. But when I mentioned this to a former union chapter leader in our school (who retired as an A.P., after switching to administration, something I have seen happen too often in our schools), he berated the Chief as a "socialiist paper" and so not "his cup of tea".

Albert Shanker used to run a weekly column in the NY Times (I think as a paid advertisement). Ask our leadership to try and do that now. Firstly, they would decline. Secondly, even if, by some device, you got them to agree, the NY Times would say "No." Times have changed.

Of course, what our leaders would write might be drivel in favor of (the unworkable, given our realities) Common Core standards, teacher evaluation and "collaboration" between labor and management. They're not that different from the ones (including governments, such as the French) who collaborated with the Nazi occupiers in WW2 in this regard.

But are our colleagues that different from the leadership in their views, shaped by the media barrage that has been ongoing for decades? I have mentioned only the mainstream print media in our "liberal" city. The less said about the other mainstream media, the better.

Meanwhile, capital is increasingly globalized, and working in tandem all around the planet to put the squeeze on workers.

So, while making no excuses for our union leadership, one has also to see this struggle in its broader context. Attacking only the leadership will not make the Kleins, Rhees, Duncans and their political and financial mentors (such as Bloomberg and Obama and those who are far worse) go away.

Thanks, though, for the information, Norm.

Fraternally -- Arjun (Janah)

Note Added:

One more thing should be mentioned. In addition to the "fear factor" arising from a poor economy that deters workers from quitting a job and allows employers to force them to work yet more as well as to follow even more unreasonable work guidelines that they might otherwise question, the increased workload also often leaves certain workers little or no time to attend rallies, be otherwise politically active or even to inform themselves of the issues. One can see this with many overloaded teachers, whose work often extends well beyond work hours, which have also expanded. In New York City, the breaking up of the big schools into smaller ones further isolates UFT members.

Other requirements on beginning teachers (such as getting a Masters' degree within two years, and having to jump through all sorts of other hoops) also contribute to this. In a profession in which many of the workers are women, family responsibilities also weigh heavily on many -- especially on single parents of either gender. The delay (increasingly indefinite) in getting tenure, adds, as you mentioned, to the mental, emotional and physical pressure, leaving little mental workspace free for other things.

You do suggest that all of this might compel teachers and others to quit or change jobs -- in addition to those being forced out, especially the ones who are senior and so cost more, even as Bloomberg and others squeeze the schools financially. My naive guess would be that the poor economy trumps this exiting, with ten younger people, desperate for work (and perhaps the benefits, such as healthcare for family, that public employees still retain) lined up to take the job of whoever quits or is fired. Even if there is a net contraction in the public school workforce, with some past positions remaining unfilled, the remaining (or new) workers have to scramble to get the same (or more) work done, and the "fear factor" drives them in this. Of course, the quality and integrity of the work inevitably suffers, with even more attention to "educosmetics" and even less to what is truly needed for the students.

Network for Public Education to Hold First Annual Conference in March

Volume 1, Issue: #30  November 23, 2013

Inside NPE News Election 2013: The Results Victorious Sue Peters Thanks NPE Check out NPE News Briefs - a service from the Network for Public Education - for the latest headlines from journalists and bloggers around the country. You can even subscribe to our once-daily digest - delivered via email every day. NPE News Briefs NPE News Briefs PODCASTS This week, Julian Vasquez Heilig discusses charter school policies and practices Reign of Error,  the new book by Diane Ravitch is now available for purchase from major outlets. Find details here!

Greetings! The Network for Public Education is pleased to announce our first National Conference. The event will take place on March 1 & 2, 2014 (the weekend prior to the world-famous South by Southwest Festival) at The University of Texas at Austin. In the coming weeks, we will release more details. In the meantime, make your travel plans and click this link and submit your email address to receive updates about the NPE National Conference 2014. Information will also be available on Facebook, Twitter, and on the NPE website.   Click here to receive information about the NPE National Conference 2014  Sue Peters - Seattle School Board Director-Elect - Thanks NPE Members for Contributing to Her Victory Dear Diane and members and supporters of the Network for Public Education, Once again, I am pleased to extend my thanks to you and NPE for your invaluable support and endorsement of my grassroots candidacy for Seattle School Board. I am thrilled to announce that we won - convincingly! On Election night, we led by 51-48 percent, and that lead has only grown with every new vote tally. We are now approaching a 9-point margin, at 54-45 percent. That is nearly a 14,000-vote lead. Why Our Win Matters: This is a victory not only for my campaign, but for communities, families, and educators everywhere who are the key stakeholders in public education, but whose voices are not always heard in the national debate over education reform, or in our own local school district. This is also a victory for authentic, grassroots democracy. Seattle voters did not allow a small group of moneyed interests to buy this election. My opponent's campaign and political action committee (PAC) spent a record-breaking $240,000+, much of it on negative campaigning, most of it bankrolled by a small group of wealthy proponents of corporate ed reform and charter schools. The PAC attacked my candidacy four times throughout the campaign with progressively more mendacious and offensive mailers. The attacks focused almost entirely on defending the Gates Foundation, in a bizarre and unsuccessful attempt to discredit me, and completely ignored the important issues facing our school district like overcrowding, inequity of resources among our schools, excessive testing and low teacher morale. This amount of money and such tactics are unprecedented not only in Seattle but Washington State for a school board race. Thankfully, voters were not fooled by the distortions and diversions. I am proud of my authentic, fiscally responsible, volunteer-driven campaign, which remained focused on the issues and maintained its integrity. I am also grateful to everyone who helped us counter the barrage of misinformation, and to those of you who promoted my candidacy personally. I want to particularly thank Dr. Diane Ravitch, former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Education and national education historian, who recognized that my campaign represented a national battle over the integrity and future of public education. Her support gave important legitimacy to our campaign and to my efforts over the years to engage on education issues, as both a journalist and parent. I believe my near decade of experience with the Seattle Public School District resonated with voters, as well as my clear commitment to keeping the public in public education. Thank you again. Sincerely, Sue Peters Parent, journalist, public education advocate, and Seattle School Board Director-Elect Please forward this newsletter far and wide!  In solidarity, The Network For Public Education

JFK: Political Thoughts

....during a reception at the National Gallery of Art, the Kennedys were supposed to take an elevator to greet their guests. But the elevator was not working, and when they stepped out, the lieutenant said, he was so close to Mrs. Kennedy that he could smell her perfume. Here is how he remembers what happened next: “I’m in my mannequin face, and she said words to the effect, “Jack, let’s take the stairs.’ And he said, ‘We can wait.’ They go back and forth a few times, and then her tone changed just like any other wife. ‘Jack, people are waiting.’ ‘O.K.,’ he answers her and turning his head toward me, says, ‘Don’t worry — I make all the big decisions.’ ”.... NY Times, Friday, Nov. 22. 2013

That was why teenagers like us, who became political junkies because of him, loved JFK. Read "Reckless Youth" about his early years and you'll see the sense of humor and also his defiance of authority. But not Jackie's in this case.

Yesterday I did my "Day Of" - Oh, God, Another November 22, 1963 Remembrance where I didn't want to get too deep in the political weeds.

The first thing I thought of once the shock of the assassination wore off was that anti-Castro Cubans who were livid at what they viewed as Kennedy's betrayal at the Bay of Pigs, did it. And Oswald's initial connection to Cuba in those early hours made it look that way. But he was portrayed as a Cuban sympathizer. I assumed for many years he was manipulated by the exiles. If not them then the right wingers. Or the military. Or the CIA.  [See above].

I spent most of Friday afternoon listening to Mike Francesa on JFK on WFAN. What's a sports talk show doing talking about JFK? Mike is a JFK freak and has read every book on the subject. He had some great JFK expert guests on and the talk was invigorating -- Mike even let someone else talk for a change.

There was a lot of talk by Mike about how the military leaders and Kennedy hated each other -- after the Bay of Pigs he didn't trust their advice. Mike suggested watching the 1964 movie "Seven Days in May": US military leaders plot to overthrow the President because he supports a nuclear disarmament treaty and they fear a Soviet sneak attack.

Hmmmm. Read this Wicki:

Seven Days in May is an American political thriller motion picture directed by John Frankenheimer, starring Burt Lancaster, Kirk Douglas, Fredric March, and Ava Gardner, and released in February 1964 with a screenplay by Rod Serling based on the novel of the same name by Fletcher Knebel and Charles W. Bailey II, which was published in 1962. The story is said to have been influenced by the right-wing anti-Communist political activities of General Edwin A. Walker after he resigned from the military. An additional inspiration was provided by the 1961 interview by Knebel, who was also a political journalist and columnist, conducted with the newly appointed Air Force Chief of Staff, Curtis LeMay, an advocate of preventive first-strike nuclear option. President John F. Kennedy had read the novel and believed the scenario as described could actually occur in the United States. According to Frankenheimer in his director's commentary, production of the film received encouragement and assistance from Kennedy through White House Press Secretary Pierre Salinger, who conveyed to Frankenheimer Kennedy's wish that the film be produced and that, although the Pentagon did not want the film made, the President would conveniently arrange to visit Hyannis Port for a weekend when the film needed to shoot outside the White House.

Edwin Walker was the general Oswald took a shot at shortly before Nov. 22. There was a rampant right wing movement that emerged from the anti-Communist McCarthy witch hunts of the 50s. The John Birch Society was the Tea Party of the day but much more fringe.

And then there was the growing civil rights movement and what that unleashed. Even though Kennedy was cautious, his moves were enough to turn loose the nuts.

So this was the environment the assassination took place in and Dallas was a sort of Ground Zero.

Throughout yesterday afternoon I was thinking back to those times. We -- my friends and I -- became interested in politics when JFK was elected. In 1960 I was in my junior year at Thomas Jefferson HS -- I was on the Honor classes and we received what I would consider a college level education, with a lot of political talk. We made sure to watch the JFK press conferences. We were reading the NY Times.

So I was aware of the trip to Dallas and the concerns - until I saw some of the recreations of the shooting this past week I was pretty convinced there was more than one shooting. This is not to say that Oswald was not an agent of some kind or being manipulated in some way.

There has been a lot of talk and attempts to prove that JFK would have pulled us out of Viet Nam. My buddy at Raging Horse pretty much goes in that direction. (But then again, he is Irish.) I don't agree. I don't believe in the "great man" theory of history. It wasn't FDR who created the conditions that enabled him to be great. Neither did Churchill.

I think even if Kennedy wanted to make peace of sorts -- with the Soviets, Viet Nam and even, as suggested, Castro, he could not pull against the prevailing winds of the Domino Theory. And if he resisted he would be shunted aside -- or maybe even assassinated.

====

Some links people are sending:

Rolling Stone:

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/john-f-kennedys-vision-of-peace-20131120

http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/news/oliver-stone-looks-back-at-jfk-20131104

And more for conspiracy fans:

Carl Gibson

NationofChange / Op-Ed

Published: Friday 22 November 2013

16 Mind-Blowing Facts About Who Really Killed JFK 

Just this one is enough to get one assassinated by the lunatic Cuban exile fringe:

5. JFK openly sided with Castro in the Cuban Revolution

"If you see him again, tell him that I'm willing to declare Goldwater my friend if that will guarantee Kennedy's re-election!" – Fidel Castro to 

Jean Daniel, November 19, 1963

On October 24, 1963, French journalist Jean Daniel met with JFK in an interview arranged by Newsweek. Daniel would later interview Fidel Castro, just three days before Kennedy's assassination. US-Cuba relations had been volatile since the botched Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961. Castro had recently removed Fulgencio Batista, a right-wing dictator allied with the US, from office, and instead allied with the Soviet Union in the height of the cold war. The Bay of Pigs invasion was the CIA's failed ploy to push Kennedy into a corner and force him to go to war with Cuba, and by default, the Soviet Union.

President Eisenhower had already allocated $13 million to the CIA during his final year in office to authorize the training of Brigade 2506, a paramilitary group charged with overthrowing the Castro regime. Three days after Bridgade 2506 traveled from Guatemala to invade Cuba, Castro forced their surrender, prompting Kennedy to make the decision to mount a larger invasion or suffer a humiliating defeat. After the incident, Kennedy famously said he wanted to "splinter the CIA into a thousand pieces and scatter it to the winds."

Jean Daniel's eye-opening interview with President Kennedy, roughly 2 years after the Bay of Pigs and a year after the Cuban Missile Crisis, revealed that Kennedy in fact sympathized with Fidel Castro, the socialist leader that Americans were conditioned to hate. This is in spite of the fact that Kennedy ran against Nixon in the election on a platform of stiffness toward the Cuban regime.

"I believe that there is no country in the world including any and all the countries under colonial domination, where economic colonization, humiliation and exploitation were worse than in Cuba, in part owing to my country's policies during the Batista regime.... I will even go further: to some extent it is as though Batista was the incarnation of a number of sins on the part of the United States. Now we shall have to pay for those sins. In the matter of the Batista regime, I am in agreement with the first Cuban revolutionaries." – 

John F. Kennedy, October 24, 1963

Just as he did with Nikita Khrushchev, JFK used intermediaries to correspond with Castro and set up a meeting between the two leaders, subverting his own State Department. Kennedy instructed Adlai Stevenson's assistant, William Atwood, to start communicating with Cuba's UN ambassador, Carlos Lechuga. Castro was doing the same, having been urged by Khrushchev to communicate with Kennedy in an attempt to make peace. Atwood was making progress on setting up talks between the two leaders through Castro's assistant, Rene Vallejo.

On November 19, 1963, Fidel Castro appeared suddenly at Jean Daniel's hotel in Havana, prompting a six-hour conversation from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m., wanting to hear all about his conversation with Kennedy. The Cuban leader told Daniel that he believed Kennedy could be the one US president to forge world peace.

"He still has the possibility of becoming, in the eyes of history, the greatest President of the United States, the leader who may at last understand that there can be coexistence between capitalists and socialists, even in the Americas. He would then be an even greater president than Lincoln," Castro said.

On the afternoon of November 22, Jean Daniel was interviewing Castro at his home about the Cuban Missile Crisis, when Castro got a call about President Kennedy having been shot in Dallas. Upon hearing the news, Castro repeated the phrase, "Es una mala noticia (this is bad news)," three times. Upon hearing confirmation of Kennedy's death, Castro told Daniel, "Everything is changed. Everything is going to change." Lyndon Baynes Johnson put on hold any and all dialogue between Washington and Havana, despite Castro's numerous attempts to reach out and make peace.

 

Lisa Donlan Judges Bloomberg Ed Legacy in Comparison to the Old System

The argument ed deformers made for mayoral control was
corruption, chaos, inequity and cronyism by the old school boards. Many of us fought to reform that system, not to eliminate it. In fact I and my pals went to many school board meetings in District 14 through the 70s arguing for less supervisors and lower class size and for fundamental reform.

But the horror story of the chaos, inequity and cronyism under Bloomberg though Tweed makes the old days look like chicken feed.

Lisa Donlan, parent activist on the Lower East Side (District 1) supreme takes over from here:

Tweed was at least as guilty, if not more so,  given the magnitude and lack of transparency of their own
corruption, chaos, inequity and cronyism.

The recycling of bureaucrats, often double dipping pensioners in the new SSOs and CBOs and other private partnerships (ie: Region 9 Head Sup Peter Heaney  to America's Choice; Lelsie Zackman, Alice Young, and Barbara Gambino,  Region 9 Supes to New Visions); the inter related hedge fund  charter board board members (Spencer Robertson, son of titan Julian,  head of  PAVE charter and wife Sarah past Board Pres at Girl Prep, for example); the DoE charter school office  to charter management and edu-biz profit making organizations (Michael Duffy, Victory, the for-profit CMO (along w/ colleague Aquila Haynes), and Great Oaks Charter; Recy Dunn now at New Leaders along with Jean Desravines, Christina Grant to ED of NYCAN... the list is long - for example see articles like this GS column:

 

Dunn is the third person to lead the charter office since the law was passed last May. The former director of the city’s charter office, Michael Duffy, left the DOE in July. Aaron Listhaus, the charter office’s former Chief Academic Officer, stepped in as interim director, before Dunn took over the office in the middle of the school year. Listhaus has also since left the office to lead the Hebrew Charter Center.

But one of my fave's, anecdotal as it may be, is rich in symbolism:

The hiring of ex Bear Sterns exec as DoE CFO, post Wall Street melt down, who then bilked the city of time/money including siphoning off almost $400K for hypnosis for Tweedie birds to learn to "manage change"!

 

You can NOT make this stuff up!

http://nypost.com/2008/08/12/wall-st-exec-bullish-on-new-job-as-ed-cfo/ 

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/city-educrat-fined-6-500-email-line-gig-private-sector-manage-real-estate-article-1.987696

William Howatt, a new age hypnotist and fellow Bear Stearns alum, to boost morale in the Education Department. They later found Howatt did much of his work from his home in Nova Scotia, Canada.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/city-educrat-fined-6-500-email-line-gig-private-sector-manage-real-estate-article-1.987696#ixzz2lORDiGXC

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/new-age-hypnotherapist-guru-william-howatt-cost-doe-374k-teaching-ability-adapt-article-1.414238

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/05/25/nyregion/20110525conflict-doc.html

And this just in from Diane Ravitch blog:

 

Most Surprising Conclusion of the Week

by dianeravitch

During his three terms as mayor --12 years--Mayor Bloomberg developed a data-driven strategy for school reform that relied heavily on high-stakes testing to close schools and replace them with small schools or charter schools. He eliminated neighborhood high schools and even neighborhood middle schools. "Choice" and test-based accountability were the central themes of his reforms.

The school closings were an annual ritual. Thousands of parents and teachers protested the closings but were routinely ignored by the mayor's Board of Education, whose majority served at his pleasure, knowing the mayor would fire them if they bucked his wishes.

He closed scores of schools and opened hundreds of new schools. Some of the schools he closed were "new" schools that he had opened.

By the end of his tenure, polls showed that no more than 22-26% of voters approved of his education policies.

Many, it seemed, wanted a good neighborhood school, not a cornucopia of choices.

Yet at a recent discussion of the Bloomberg reforms, a report was released hailing this era of "reform" that the voters rejected. What was strange was that the report praised the Bloomberg era for what it did not demonstrate.

“Perhaps the mayor’s greatest education legacy is the belief that good public schools for all are possible,” the researchers, from the Center for New York City Affairs at The New School, write in an introduction. ”Yet the challenges, including resource challenges, remain huge.”

Not many teachers or public school parents are likely to endorse that statement.

Sadly, Bloomberg did not create a system of good public schools for all, nor did he encourage the belief "that good public schools for all are possible." Instead, he promoted the idea that those who wanted a good school should leave the public school system for a privately managed charter school.

That heroic task is now on Bill de Blasio's to-do list.

Susan's Saturday Special

We're getting into the habit of posting an Ohanian compendium every Saturday morning so we all have stuff to read in all our spare weekend time. As usual, she tears up the common core.

We're serving Thanksgiving lunch at the Senior Center today. Turkey and all the trimmings.
There are new cartoons, but I'm in a rush. You can find them on the home page. Two categories: Cartoons  and NCLB Cartoons.
Yesterday was the anniversary of Joe Hill's death by firing squad. Listen to all the versions of 'Joe Hill' for which I've posted hot links. Very moving. I was especially moved by what Paul Robeson did in Australia. Posted that as well as his earlier rendition of the song.
I hope you'll read my two pieces, one on data that kills and the other on Ed  Week & its bloggers. A lot of work goes into this sort of thing. I do try to provide new information instead of just ranting. I confess to getting tired of the rants.
Off to the turkey fete.
Susan
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Data That Kills and Gates Homework Flop
Susan Ohanian
blog
2013-11-18 http://susanohanian.org/data.php?id=528
Two articles on the dangers of data overload in diverse fields provide strong parallels with policies being pushed on US public schools.
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Education Week Relegates Common Core Criticism to its Bloggers
Susan Ohanian
blog
2013-11-17 http://susanohanian.org/core.php?id=622
Here's a discussion of how Education Week covers the Common Core.
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Joe Hill Lives On
Susan Ohanian
2013-11-19 http://susanohanian.org/show_commentary.php?id=1139
A tribute to Joe Hill.
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Dear Senator Martins,
Joseph Mugivan, MS, Educational Administration PD
New York State Senate
2013-11-19 http://susanohanian.org/show_letter.php?id=1624
 Give us the list of those who designed the curriculum, materials and evaluations along with their credentials as classroom teachers.
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To the editor
Stephen Krashen
Wall Street Journal
2013-11-18 http://susanohanian.org/show_letter.php?id=1623
Kudos on Steve's letter. Look at what they left out.
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Common Core Children Hate School
Facebook
 Common Core Children Hate School
2013-11-19 http://susanohanian.org/outrage_fetch.php?id=1735
You are invited to add your story to a Facebook site on the topic of Common Core Children Hate School.
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Order the CD of the resistance:
"No Child Left Behind? Bring Back the Joy."
To order online (and hear samples from the songs) http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/dhbdrake4
Other orders: Send $15 to
Susan Ohanian
P. O. Box 26
Charlotte, VT 05445

 

Oh, God, Another November 22, 1963 Remembrance

Yes, I can't resist the call. I was an 18-year old sophomore at Brooklyn College, living at home in a quickly changing East New York section of Brooklyn. I finally had my driver's license and didn't have to take the train from Pennsylvania Ave., change at Franklin for the Flatbush line - an hour trip. By car I had a special route that got me to BC in 17 minutes. Followed by a half hour looking for parking.

Fridays were a special day for me. For some strange reason, I was an Air Force ROTC 2nd-year cadet and Fridays we had to wear our uniforms because we marched and did drills for 50 minutes at noon. We got one credit for that. We used the Girls Athletic Field at Brooklyn College -- right in front of Roosevelt Hall on Bedford Avenue. At times we were heckled and leafleted by anti-war protesters as we walked off the field at around 12:50.

And it was precisely at that time as we were walking off on November 22, 1963 that a buzz went up about a shooting in Dallas. We had our own ROTC lounge in the basement of Ingersoll Hall with a TV, probably one of the few on the campus. We headed down there and the lounge was already full of people, watching Walter Kronkite. I had to stand at the door with others. Non-ROTC civilians kept showing up, so we were crushed together.

When Kronkite said he was wounded, I had a vision of Kennedy standing at a press conference, his arm in a sling, laughing about it. Within 10 or 15 minutes or maybe 30, there was Kronkite taking off his glasses and announcing JFK's death. That image of Kronkite's glasses coming off is seared in my brain.

Then hours of wondering the campus in a state of shock. A young student trips in front of me on the steps and I get her some water to wash off her knee. I'm holding my hat in my hand when an officer walks by and glares at me -- I point to the young lady and he gives me a "good job" wave.

I'm also pledging a fraternity. So I have to carry around the paddle all over the campus. That night the 6 pledges were supposed to be kidnapped -- taken out somewhere late at night and left with no money. Word gets to us that the kidnapping is cancelled but why don't we come down to the frat house (actually, apartment) on Foster Av. and Flatbush.

My memory is hazy over the next few hours - until I arrive at a somber frat house around 8PM. Some drinks come out and people liven up a bit. Then something astounding -- louder and louder and wilder and wilder -- someone is sitting on the window sill with his legs hanging out the window. Music is blasting. A couple are walking by, arm in arm, looking up at us in disgust.

The only way to explain this behavior is a letting go of sorts. No one seems ashamed. I don't either. It is the only release before a week where for the first - and one of the only times - I went into a total state of depression.

Saturday is awful. Sunday morning too. I have to leave the house so I go across the street to my friend Barry's house. I ring the bell and his brother Larry answers the door. He screams, "Oswald was just shot," and I race after him down the hall to continue watching the mayhem that never seems to have gone away.

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More this weekend on political thoughts and the impact of Kennedy on me and my generation. We were home on snow day I believe for his inauguration and I remember Robert Frost squinting in the sun. And on how I thought John Kennedy was one of the funniest people -OK- we just had 8 years of (yawn) Eisenhower -- We watched Kennedy press conferences for his jokes.

A few quick examples:

 "I just received the following wire from my generous Daddy: "Dear Jack, Don't buy a single vote more than is necessary. I'll be damned if I'm going to pay for a landslide."' --President John Kennedy

"Just think what my margin might have been if I had never left home at all." --President John Kennedy, commenting on the fact that he had campaigned hard in Alaska and lost but won Hawaii handily without visiting it.

"The pay is good and I can walk to work." –President John Kennedy

And for those upset at the political divide today:

Question: "The Republican National Committee recently adopted a resolution saying you were pretty much of a failure. How do you feel about that?" Kennedy: "I assume it passed unanimously." 

"Do you realize the responsibility I carry? I'm the only person standing between Richard Nixon and the White House." –President John Kennedy

Jim Vail: Should Karen Lewis Run for Mayor?

Jim Vail poses an interesting question at Second City Teacher along with an interesting analysis. I missed Karen at Brooklyn College the other day. Might have been a fun question to ask.

Chicago Mayor Karen Lewis?

Should Karen Lewis Run for Mayor?

By Jim Vail

When it comes to politics, it's pretty dismal.

The reason we the workers are losing, and they the 1% are winning is because they control the political world.

Who do you think chose Obama to be president - the people, or billionaires like the Pritzkers who now have coveted government posts and see laws passed in their favor. 
The banks got bigger, and health insurance profits increased after the election of the first African American president.
And certainly they put plenty of money into his campaign.

It is such a rigged game.

I am still amazed that people believe in this system they call democracy.

When Mayor Richard Daley announced already almost four years ago that he would no longer continue his reign over Chicago, it was like a king and a dynasty ending.

But that was in name only.

The new rep for the rich is this guy from Winnetka named Rahm Emanuel, who has a knack for squeezing the rich for their money and climbing up the political ladder by threatening unions, pensioners and anyone else in the 99%.

He's now the mayor and it's all very depressing.  

After attacking the teachers union, which brought on the first major strike in 25 years, this guy is supposedly so hated that everyone keeps saying he can't possibly win re-election.

The reality is anything but.

It ain't the people who have a choice here, despite what some may foolishly think, it's the ruling class.  And the ruling class feel this big lover of privatization and big banks and hedge funds is getting the job down.

So you actually have talk of Emanuel eventually running for president.  

Depressing, right?

So who could possibly run against this guy if you don't have a massive war chest?  

Well, you obviously can't compete against him when he's got most of the corporate and Hollywood cash in his bag.

How about defeating him with an army of workers?

Well, there again it's very depressing.  Many of the city's unions are vying for the lead role of the cowardly lion, and coughing up hard-earned worker cash for the mayor.  Teamsters, Engineers, Unite-Here!

There are some who are holding out the faint hope that the one visible candidate who could raise a ruckus, and has, against the mayor and gain a media presence, would be Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis.

But Lewis has told her troops she cannot run for mayor.  Why?  D-I-V-O-R-C-E.

Whatever, as my good friend Masha always says. 

She will run, trust me, if its possible, if she can be convinced.

There are many who would like to see Karen run.  They even started a Facebook page devoted to Karen for Mayor.  

But should Karen run?

Well, the idea sounds sexy.  It would certainly appear to be a good fight between two prize fighters.  Why not continue that battle between the CTU president and the mayor in the next election.

And certainly, Lewis would raise the issues of the 99% - jobs, pensions, heath care, etc.

And should she run a strong campaign, would it not give hope to the rest of the country that our political process is actually open to a good fight for the people?

But would it make a difference?  Could Karen possibly compete against corporate America? Would she actually implement changes against the wishes of big business who put Emanuel where he is today?

This is what one teacher delegate told Karen at the recent house of delegates:

"Instead of supporting Democrats, we should run our own. The rest of working Chicago faces the same attacks we face, both from the mayor and from the corporations. Our campaigns could attract lots of support – the kind of broader support we are going to need if we are going to try to push back budget cuts, bad laws and school closings. We may not win these races, but that’s besides the point. We will be able to organize our power on our issues, and show how those relate to the concerns of parents, city workers and others.

"Which brings me to this, and I know I’m not alone on this one.  I think Karen should run. Karen could lead the biggest and most visible fight against this mayor, and the biggest fight and most successful fight in the city in recent memory. She has the respect of those who see the need to fight.  You running would give people a chance to say “it’s wrong, what you’re doing” when they go to the polls.  I know you don’t want to run, but the circumstances call for it, our situation calls for it.  This would be a great opportunity to reach out – a campaign would give people in the community a chance to work with us, and for us to know their concerns.  And you liked showing up Jesse Ruiz?  Guess who you’d get to debate, this time. . . "